Something Borrowed
by ehefler
Summary: Maya planned on spending her summer hold up at Riley's house, watching bad movies and stealing the cookies Topanga brings home. Lucas planned on spending the summer in Texas with his friends, his horses, and his new step mother. A white lie coupled with an unexpected wedding announcement change both of their plans in a drastic way. [Fake!Dating Lucaya]
1. Chapter 1

Reagent exams were taxing.

Maya claimed they were a method of weeding out the weak; finding the students they could sacrifice to the God of government funding without losing their test scores. Riley disagreed with Maya – in her loving way that made it seem like she wasn't disagreeing with you at all. She claimed it was all about testing the teachers. Farkle thrived off the energy (and maybe enjoyed the recognition he received from the teachers a little bit too much), but by the end of the week-long testing even he was worn out. And Lucas managed to cram all his exams into a three day period so he could leave early for his summer vacation to Texas. Maya said he was probably a weird version of a werewolf who transformed every June 21st for three months; Riley just thought it was sweet he cared so much about visiting his family and friends back home.

The last day of exams was finally there. Riley and Maya had matching dark circles – they'd both been hiding them with makeup at the start of the week but were now too worn out to care. Farkle was wearing the same shirt he'd warn two days before and hadn't noticed until Maya pointed it out to him. U.S. History with Mr. Matthews – Maya didn't know how they _still_ had Riley's father as a teacher, but they did (and honestly, it was starting to get a little creepy – was their final exam.

Maya had tried to convince Riley to steal the test; it would be easy. Just slip her hand into his school purse, which Cory insisted was a briefcase, and take it. They'd be out in under a minute. Riley, being the voice of reason and terrible liar that she was, couldn't pull it off. Maya didn't hold it against her, some people just weren't made for the stealing tests – Maya ended up finding out that she wasn't made for it either. So the two of them had to rely on actually studying, hence the dark circles.

Cory had started the mandatory pre-exam speech. It consisted of all the things the students already knew: the test would consist of fifty multiple choice questions and an essay; they had two hours to complete it; no cheating. He even managed to bring up the age old mantra of 'make your marks heavy and dark.' He was halfway through explaining they they needed to use a number two pencil – how he made that conversation last a full three minutes, none of them could figure out – when he was interrupted by the classroom door opening. Riley immediately lit up.

"Ah, Mr. Friar. Almost missed the exam." Cory said, gesturing towards the empty seat that Lucas usually occupied.

"Sorry, sir." Lucas responded tipping his head a bit towards the older man. Maya would stave that in her cowboy-related insult arsenal later; she might even have to buy a cowboy hat for a visual reinterpretation of it. "There was a family emergency."

Family emergency was the oldest excuse in the book. Teachers couldn't refute the claim because if there was an actual family emergency – like a sick grandma or a dead family pet – they would look like total jackasses. Maya nodded in appreciation; Riley looked like she was going to worry herself sick.

"I hope everything is alright. Now please, take your seat." And Cory once again gestured to the empty desk. If Maya didn't know better, she would say that Lucas was blushing, but she did know better. That boy seldom got embarrassed, it was probably the start of his farmer's tan or maybe he was coming down with the flu.

Lucas made his way into the desk behind Maya and sat down with a loud plop. Which was decidedly out of character for Lucas as he was not a plopper, Maya knew this because she was one. She threw her weight around every time she say somewhere. It was her way of saying 'hey, I'm here!' When non ploppers plopped there was something going on. She didn't, however, have time to try and figure out why Hop Along wasn't on his plane to Texas. Riley didn't even have time to turn around and stare longingly as Lucas – which maybe Maya was a little happy about.

Cory had begun handing out the test. Which meant that if you wanted to not fail and immediately get kicked out of the classroom, you shut your mouth and faced forward. The sound of scratching pencils broke the silence. Students had begun to fill in their information, making sure the fill the bubbles in under their name exactly as they had been instructed. Maya did it too, making a joke out of it even though only she was paying attention.

The confidence that she'd been radiating moments before all but vanished when she started looking at some of the questions. Their class had barely covered some of the stuff in the booklet. If the sounds of turning pages and bubbled being filled in was an indication, no one around her seemed to be phased by the questions.

"I need to talk to you after class." Was that Lucas? Maya could barely make out what he was saying. She honestly wasn't even sure that she was hallucinating. That sometimes happened during times of high stress she'd hear her friends – or her pseudo-half friends like Lucas – comforting her. She wasn't exactly sure how 'I need to talk to you after class' was supposed to be comforting though.

Maya glanced over at Riley who was scribbling away, confidently putting her pencil to paper. She must have known the correct answer to the essay question; Maya hoped that she'd know it too. Her eyes drifted to Mr. Matthews who was at his desk, flipping through what looked to be a grading rubric for the exam they were taking. She turned the page to the essay question, hoping that might lift her spirits.

_Throughout United States history, Congress has passed legislation to address important social and economic issues. These laws have often had a significant impact on the United States and/or on American society. Select two pieces of legislation passed by the United States Congress and for each. Describe the historical circumstances that led to the passage of the legislation and discuss the impact of the law on the United States and/or on American society_

Fuck. She was totally boned.

"Maya." She jumped a bit when Lucas' hand grazed her back. She was positive that time that she'd not been having a stress hallucination. She was pretty much positive Mr. Perfect wouldn't cheat, but she was absolutely positive that he wouldn't cheat off _her_. "Did you hear me? I need to tal-"

Cory cleared his throat glancing at the two of them. If it had been any other teacher they would have both just failed their exam. Finally the fix was working in their favor. She wasn't totally sure why he wanted to talk to her after class; didn't they always talk after class? That was their thing. Farkle would join them when he got out of his AP World Cultures class and they would stop over by the froyo shop in town. Every day it was the same thing - except for the last few days where Lucas had been missing, presumed Texas, which was worse than dead in Maya's book. Why would today be any different?

"I'm not giving you an organ." She mumbled back, trying not to focus on the fact that he still hadn't moved his hand from her shoulder. Her skin was getting hot and sticky under his heavy palm; didn't he need that hand for other things like taking his test? Cory cleared his throat again, this time more forcefully. That was their second strike, one more and he would have to kick them out. Maya paled, she could not fail this test because Giddy Up couldn't keep his mouth shut. She shook his hand off as nonchalantly as she could and turned her eyes back down to her test.

She'd been one of the last few people actually working on her test. Riley had finished relatively early and had taken to doodling flowers across the back of her testing booklet. Maya heard Lucas set his pencil down about an hour into it; his foot hadn't stopped tapping since. And she was pretty sure the boy next to her had just written 'thanks for the two hour nap' on his paper and immediately fallen asleep.

The rest of the class had already begun chattering quietly in direct opposition to Mr. Matthews rules. He seemed too preoccupied with the prospect of summer being so close to care – Maya was pretty sure she even saw a pair of swim trunks peeking out from his school purse. She'd closed her answer sheet at the ten minute warning. Riley sprang into action. That is if you call turning towards Lucas and Maya to start a conversation springing.

"I thought you'd left. Is everything okay with your family? What happened?" Riley rattled off, a chipper grin on her face. She'd obviously been waiting with bated breath to ask Lucas what was going on. Luckily, Riley hadn't had time to go through Friar withdrawal, she'd been too busy studying. So it wasn't too wistful when she talked to him, "When's your plane leaving? Tonight? Tomorrow? Are you flying into Houston?"

"My family is fine." Lucas responded; it was an attempt to quell Riley's worrying. He gazed upon her with a fondness that made Maya a little bit ill. She half-wished the two would stop pining over each other and make a freaking move already, the other half wasn't exactly sure what it wished for. Maybe fish sticks. "Didn't I tell ya'll? I'm stayin' here this summer."

"What?!" Riley and Maya asked in unison. Maya's was out of shock; Riley's was out of excitement. The ring of the bell saved the two of them from a stern talking to by Riley's dad about the importance of adhering to rules and how you always don't get a second chance or some baloney about not cheating that would land them in summer school.

Riley collected their exams, her skip just a bit peppier than it had been when she and Maya had arrived that morning. Maya doubted it had anything to do with testing being over. She was handing them to her father, happily explaining that Lucas would be staying for the summer. Maya was trying to count all the things that she and Riley wouldn't be doing now that Lucas was here.

No more trash romantic comedy marathons. No more days at the spa – which was just them giving each other manicures and eating the cucumber that was supposed to go on their eyes. Hell, there would probably be no more couple's art class; which was the only art class that Maya had been able to attend for free, so she'd brought Riley along to fill the space and be her muse. She was half-way to the door before she'd remembered Lucas had said something about needing to talk to her. She paused, turning to look for him, but he was already gone.

Riley had somehow found her way over to the blonde and was looping her arm around Maya's. They walked arm and arm into the crowded halls. Some students had taken the liberty of emptying out their lockers by throwing all their papers onto the floor. Others were celebrating their freedom with glitter and what looked like silly string. Farkle was leaning against his locker talking to Lucas.

"Farkle and Lucas, Lucas and Farkle. Summer in New York." Farkle nodded his head in time with his words. For all the growing up he'd done, he'd still kept some of his more eccentric mannerism from childhood. Maya knew Farkle would like the idea of Lucas staying for the summer. "This is going to be fun." Farkle stated as if he'd already planned their summer vacation to the T, and hell maybe he had.

Lucas glanced over at Maya and his look turned from genuine interest to discomfort. While the two had never necessarily been the chummiest of pals, she'd never seem that look turned her way. Farkle, however, greeted the two of them with his signature greeting, "Ladies."

"Farkle," They responded in unison. Just like always. Riley untangled her arm from Maya's and twisted the combination lock on her locker. They always met in front of Riley's locker as it was the only one central to their classes. They all kept their textbooks in there so they wouldn't have to run to the ends of the school to grab it between classes, except Maya who kept them in there do she wouldn't lose them before the end of the semester.

"Maya," Riley scolded her friend in the best 'mom' voice that she could manage, "I told you to turn these in last week." She pulled out a stack of unopened textbooks, one of them still had the saran wrap on it. Maya groaned when Riley passed the heavy books over to her.

"I was going to, I just got… busy." Maya hadn't been able to think of a decent excuse on short notice, and the look on Riley's face proved that she wasn't buying that Maya was busy. Truthfully, she'd forgotten that she still had the books, opting to use someone else's book if she actually had to crack one open. "I'm going now, okay."

Riley gleamed like she'd won the Amazing Race or Who Wants to Be a Millionaire or another one of those ancient television shows that people liked to reference. It wasn't that hard to win an argument against Maya, especially when you're Riley Matthews. She was bumping her way through the crowd when she heard Riley shout after her, "Meet us at U-Swirl when you're done." It took some doing, but Maya managed to get a hand free to throw up a thumbs up to her friends.

The bookstore wasn't exactly far away from Riley's locker, but when a hundred students were moving one way and you were moving another it didn't exactly work in your favor. Maya was shoving just enough to get some kids to part around her, but others just pushed back. At least this meant the line for the bookstore would be relatively short.

"Maya," She abruptly stopped, forcing students to divert their path. Lucas' voice was distinct. Maya was almost certain she'd be able to find that idiot in the dark based solely on how he said her name. She turned to confirm her suspicions, and there he was (all 6 foot of him), "Thought I'd never catch up with you."

"You know I don't need an escort, right Sundance?" She asked. She turned back, focusing her energy on the task at hand. Where students seemed to bump and shove her, they parted like the Red Sea for Lucas. She rolled her eyes: high schoolers.

"All those nicknames you give me are really ruinin' my street cred," Lucas responded, trailing after her. His accent a bit thicker than normal. That usually meant that he'd been spending time around his dad; Maya was only used to hearing it once he came back from Texas at the end of the summer, so hearing it now was a bit disorienting.

"Is that what you wanted to talk to me about? Your street cred?" She made sure to mimic his too thick accent when she said 'street cred'. She wanted to make sure that he fully understood just how ridiculous he sounded.

"Um, No." Lucas shied, something Maya had never anticipated from the southerner. He always acted so confident; seeing his façade falter felt like a small victory. It only look four years, but she was getting to him, "I need a favor from you."

"I already told you, you're not getting any of my organs." She quipped as they finally reached the entrance to the bookstore. There were only a few last minute returners in line in front of her. "I'm sure you could find one on the—"

"I need you to be my girlfriend." He cut her off, and winced as the words tumbled out of his mouth, as if he was bracing himself for the impact they would have on her.

The door she's tossed open to the bookstore banged loudly against the frame as it closed, and all Maya could do was stare at him dumbfounded. It took her brain a full twenty seconds to register exactly what Lucas had said, but once it finally did compute she burst into a fit of giggles.

"Oh God," She said between laughs, "you've _totally_ lost it."

She pushed the bookstore door back open and slid through, leaving Lucas and his apparent insanity outside.

"Maya,_ please_." Lucas had apparently mustered up the courage to follow her. This had to be one of those elaborate prank shows. Like maybe Ashton Kutcher had come out of retirement and was going to jump out from behind the counter and yell 'you been prank'd!'

"Why not ask Riley? She'd be more than happy to date you," Maya responded, dumping her books onto the counter. She slid her phone out of her pocket and Lucas paled – did he think she was about to call Riley or something. She rolled her eyes, what a mess, and popped her case off. Her student ID card, subway pass and debit card were all snug against the back of her phone. She tossed her Student ID on top of the pile of books so the lackeys that worked in the book store could return them correctly.

"I can't ask Riley." Lucas responded, having regained his normal too tan for New York color.

"Why?" Maya asked. She'd already formed his response in her head. Something about true love and having to wait for the right moment. Maybe he'd even start to monologue and she'd have time to get out of there before he came to.

"Because I told my parents I was dating you." He said. Maya stopped and turned to focus on him. He looked tepid and a little bit annoyed, but he looked serious. This wasn't one of their games where she made of fun him and he played along, this was real.

"What the hell, Lucas! Why?" She had spoken a bit louder and a bit more forcefully than intended, even the person returning her books jumped a bit. The book store worker held out a receipt and her student ID, which Maya snatched out of her hand. She slid her ID back into it's spot and popped her phone case back on.

"My dad was talkin' about how my mother wasn't doing a good job raising me, and how it was improper to talk to so many young ladies." He was starting to get angry, he almost always did when it came to his mom and dad, "One thing led to another and it just happened."

"Not why did you fake date someone, you idiot." She said, pushing through the 'out' door of the bookstore. Lucas followed her, waiting for her to finish speaking, "Why me?"

"My mom likes ya." He responded more than a little embarrassed – which Maya didn't get. Maybe he should be embarrassed about pretending to date her, but he shouldn't be embarrassed about his mom liking her. Parents almost never liked her; aside from Topanga and Cory, adults often thought she was a 'bad influence' and forbid their kids from hanging out with her.

"And you've decided to bring your fake relationship with me into the real world because?" She trailed off on the last word so that he could finish the sentence.

"Because my mom wants to meet you." He responded and Maya wanted to tell him that his mom has already met her. Maya had to listen to her talk about her crunchy mom craziness back in middle school. But he continued before she had a chance, "And I guess the whole family does.

"No fucking way, Lucas." She said. The crowd of students had died down considerably, but she managed to assimilate into the small hoard still making their way through the halls. He was right at her heels. Maya was _not_ girlfriend material; she'd learned that in middle school when she'd tried to date Josh, and that lesson had been repeated with every one she'd dated in high school.

"Please, Maya." He was begging – or he was as close to begging as Lucas ever got. The boy was so used to being handed stuff that he was usually too proud to ask someone for help more than once, "I'll do anything."

She stopped walking, this time she wasn't disturbing any students but Lucas still managed to run into her. She turned around to stare at him. Was he really trying to bribe her? Not that she wasn't the type who would accept a bribe, she totally was. She never expected that he would be the type to make a bribe.

"It's just one dinner?" She knew the answer from the slightly squeamish look plastered on his face, "Christ Lucas, did you agree to a couple's retreat or something?"

"My brother Adam is getting married," He responded, like that was supposed to clear everything up for her. Maya shook her head and gestured for him to continue, "It would be more than a dinner… a considerable amount more," He paused, wincing again. She was a little annoyed (or a lot annoyed) that he thought she was going to be that mad. When he realized she wasn't going to hit him, he continued, "Uh, dinner, parties, the wedding. That's on the 20th of August."

They'd go back to school on the 26th, which meant that if Maya agreed to this convoluted plan – and that was a big if – she'd be sacrificing her whole summer to pull off this dramatic lie. She was going to have to think of something actually worth her time. Lucas, who had been looking more uncomfortable with each passing moment of silence decided to open his mouth again.

"You'd have to pretend to actually like me," He said. Maybe he was trying to convince her not to say yes, "You know, like hand holding and kissing-"

"I will _not_ kiss you," She responded, her stomach churned at the idea – at least she's pretty sure that's what her stomach was doing. Lucas looked put upon, but that look faded into a smile, like he'd just figured something out that she hadn't.

"Wait, does that mean you're going to do it then?" He asked.

"Maybe," She responded. His grin grew even wider, if that was possible. She had finally settled on what she was going to ask of him, and she laughed internally because she knew that smile was going to fade, "There's this art class at the MOMA I want to take this summer. Its six hundred dollars and I can't afford that."

"I'll pay for it. No problem," He'd replied before she'd even been able to finish asking for the bribe. She faltered, having assumed that he would say no – or at least that he would have trouble handing over that kind of money. She knew that his family was wealthy, after all you can't send your kid home to Texas every weekend without having some serious dough, but six hundred dollars was a decent chunk of change. Her mother had to work a full week to make money like that.

"Also, you have to tell Riley how you feel," She didn't know exactly where that came from; she didn't even know she had a second condition. Lucas looked as shocked as she did. While he hadn't thought twice about the money, he was hesitating on this.

"O-okay," he finally agreed. Maya didn't know exactly what to do now. Did they shake on it? Get Farkle to write up a contract for them to sign? Shit! She was supposed to be meeting Farkle and Riley (and presumable Lucas was supposed to be there too).

"Ground rules," She said. She moved towards the school's main entrance, Lucas moved with her. This time, he was walking next to her instead of trailing behind. "No kissing. No falling in love – and don't say you would never, Riley makes me watch all those shitty romantic comedy movies I know how it works."

Lucas rolled his eyes at her as they crossed over the threshold of the school's front entrance and into the bustle of New York City. Students loitered on the steps and the small, grassy knoll in front of the school.

"Also – and this one it the most important," She said, stopping him on their descent down the steps, "Riley cannot find out. She'd be upset and I can't have that, okay?"

"Of course," Lucas responded. He'd only said those two words, but it seemed like he'd implied so much more in them, like 'of course I wouldn't tell Riley I'm not an idiot.' He'd taken off down the stairs, and called out to her over his shoulder, "Farkle can't find out either."

He was right. If Farkle found out, Riley would be the first person he told. She jogged down the stairs after Lucas, chasing after him as he had been chasing after her just minutes before. She'd somehow gotten herself drafted into Lucas' preseason – Riley would obviously be the main season and probably the post season too.

She'd have to remind herself of that, that this was only temporary. That she was only doing this for her art. That class at the MOMA would be a great experience, and there was even a chance to get a gallery show out of it, which was something she'd never be able to afford on her own.

"You listening to me, Hart?" Lucas asked. Maya groaned, she hadn't been paying attention to Lucas; honestly she didn't even know he'd been speaking at all. "You're going to need to know this."

"What? Is this the parent trap? Do you have an elaborate hand shake that I need to learn?" She asked, trying to make light of the craziness she'd just agreed to.

"Yeah, I do." He responded, a smirk plaster on his perfect face, "I was saving it for after frozen yogurt, but if you want to learn it now-"

"Shut up," She groaned again, louder this time. It wasn't fun when he played along. He, of course, knew this. Hence why he played along.

"You know, if you're going to be my girlfriend, you should really be nicer to me."


	2. Chapter 2

Lucas had charts and pamphlets and a whole family tree; he'd even claimed that there was going to be a test at the end of the day on which uncle was allergic to shellfish and which cousin wore heels every day since they were thirteen. Maya prayed that he was joking.

He'd shown up at her bedroom window at seven that morning. She'd contemplated pushing him off the fire escape and ending her misery now. She could do 25 to life no problem. Usually she slept into the afternoon on days off of school – and Wednesdays. Waking her up before ten was a declaration of war and often times was punishable by death. She, however, really wanted to attend that art class, so she resisted her urges to kill and let him in.

Three hours later, those urges were back in full force. She was still in her pajamas, reading over the 'appropriate ways to address General Matthew Friar.' She wasn't sure when Lucas had the time to type this up, but she was secretly pretty sure that he kept it on hand at all times.

"Okay, but why can't I just call him Mike?" She asked for the third time that day. Lucas shook his head like she'd once again committed blasphemy and would have to say ten more Hail Marys. She just didn't get it that was his name after all. Why did she have to address him so formally? She also didn't understand why she wasn't allowed to wear cerulean, but she'd ask about that later.

"Can we take a break?" She groaned. Her hair tie had snapped, letting the untamed mane fall into her face. She began wrestling with it, attempting to find a new rubber band to put it up with. If she'd had any time to herself this morning she'd be able to leave it down, but Lucas had insisted they start right away which was why she looked like a total mess. She was pretty sure Lucas didn't even notice. Hell, she could be wearing a floor length ball gown and stilettos and he wouldn't notice.

"Uh, yeah, sure." He had been watching her intently, and it was more than obvious that he'd wanted to continue. Maya, however, couldn't muster up the energy to go over the songs from Footloose – Lucas' mom's favorite musical – again.

"Thank God!" She dropped her hands from her hair letting it fall into its own craziness. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she laid down, eyes closed, on her back. The names of the Friar family were swimming in her head and she wondered if they all looked the way Lucas and his mother did. She also wondered if his Great Aunt Irene would be as cool in person as she sounded on paper. Maya had to pause a moment upon realizing that at this moment she just might know more about Lucas' family than she did about her own.

Lucas had stayed sitting upright and was probably reading over his 'topics of interest' list again. He was really worried about this dinner – or maybe he just didn't think she could pull it off. It was probably the second thing. Sure, Maya wasn't super cultured or rich like the Friar's apparently were, but that didn't mean she couldn't act snooty.

She heard two light taps on her door, Lucas apparently did not. Moments later the door swung open. Lucas jumped to his feet – Maya could hear him scrambling to get up, she was shocked he didn't say something about not deflowering anyone. Maya stayed lying down, her eyes stayed closed.

"Well hello there gorgeous." Maya's mother, Katy, had just finished an overnight shift at the Night Hawk. She always came to check on Maya once she got home, hoping to get some of that mother-daughter bonding she heard was so good for girls before she conked out for a few hours.

Finding Lucas in the room wouldn't throw her. Katy was used to opening her daughter's bedroom door to finding people she didn't expect to be there – granted it was usually Riley, and once or twice it had been Riley and Farkle, but it simply didn't faze her anymore. She just went with it.

"You staying for breakfast, hun?" She asked.

"Call it brunch and he might," Maya chimed in trying to hide her smirk. She couldn't resist a well-timed dig at Lucas, it was impossible. She felt Lucas nudge her with his foot; it was probably supposed to be a kick but he didn't want her to retaliate.

"No ma'am. I'd hate to impose," He responded. Maya didn't have to open her eyes to know that he was giving her mom that perfect, stupid, toothy grin of his that supposedly made girls swoon. She'd seen it plenty of times and it never made her want to do anything other than vomit.

"Lucas, if I don't eat something I'm going to die." Maya said, finally opening her eyes and looking up at him. He was standing over her – Maya might go so far as to say looming – staring at her. She'd expected him to be staring at her mother, so his gaze was a bit startling and maybe a bit off putting too.

"Lucas. Lucas… Lucas!" Her mother perked up, finally recognizing the name and Maya paled. Fuck, she had to stop her mother from talking like right now, "Is this the Lucas you and Riley always talk about? You're right, he has a very –"

Maya had exhibited Flash levels of speed. She'd popped up from the floor so fast she'd given herself a head rush, but the necessity of stopping her mother from saying anything at all was the number one priority. She'd clamped a hand over her mother's mouth, giving her a very distinct look to 'shut the hell up.' Lucas watched the whole thing with an annoying grin on his face.

Katy rolled her eyes and removed Maya's hand from her mouth; Maya braced herself for the embarrassing content that was to come. Honestly, Katy might as well pull out Maya's baby pictures as well, because nothing could be worse than her mother telling Lucas what she and Riley said about him.

"So, breakfast?" Katy asked, hands on her hips and a smile on her face. She was tired, Maya could tell – not that she had to look for signs, it was instinctual to know that a ten hour shift would wear anyone out. Also, she didn't want Lucas and Katy in a room together any longer than they had to be. She could tell that Lucas was about to agree; the small scuffle had obviously changed his mind about imposing.

"We can't!" Maya chimed in before Lucas had a chance to respond. Lucas raised an eyebrow at her, Katy did as well. Maya hadn't planned what she was going to say next. Her initial response was to shove her mother out the door, Lucas out the window and to go back to sleep, but that wasn't as possible as she'd hoped it would be. "Lucas and I are going to the MOMA. I'm signing up for a class."

The words tumbled out without thinking, but she took them – you take any life preserver when you're drowning. Which is exactly what this sudden combination of her two worlds felt like. Katy lit up at the statement, sleepy or not she'd learned to get excited about Maya's art. In the last few years she and Shawn had managed to become her biggest supporters. Well, second biggest, Riley was still her number one.

"I thought you weren't gonna be able to take that class," Katy said. Maya wondered if her mother was trying to ask if she was lying, but her mom's smile never faltered. Maybe she was actually just talking to her the way mothers talked to their children; Maya still hadn't managed to master that art yet.

"I got a student grant from the museum," She responded. Lucas looked uncomfortable at the lie, and Maya wanted to tell him that he'd have to stop looking so guilty when he knew she was lying. If he didn't all this work would be for nothing.

"I'm so proud of you, baby." Before Maya knew it she was being pulled into a hug. She was pretty sure that her mother was crying – or maybe that was just the way Katy's voice sounded when she was super tired. Maya hugged her back and wondered if it should be harder to lie to her mother.

Katy didn't stick around much longer. She was too worn out to grill Maya on the scholarship or even ask her much about the class. Lucas spent the few minutes Maya's mom spent gushing over her collecting his papers. When Katy finally pulled Maya's bedroom door closed, Lucas flopped down onto her bed.

"Crust, that was close." He said, tossing the pages he'd been collecting onto the bed beside him.

"That wasn't – Wait," Maya paused, there was no way she'd just heard him right. He didn't—she stopped herself, Lucas Friar was absolutely the type of person who wouldn't take God's name in vain so he probably didn't take God 2.0's name in vain either. "Never say 'crust' again. I'll accept gosh, golly, good gracious, but not fucking crust."

He rolled his eyes and shrugged at the same time, which was a move that he'd stolen from Maya. He, of course, would never admit that. She knew because she'd pointed it out to him before, and he claimed that he'd always done it. She knew better.

Maya was trying to focus on Lucas, but her eyes kept drifting towards her bed. A nap would be so nice right now, and her bed looked so warm and comfortable – or would at least be warm and comfortable it Lucas would get his ass off it.

"Hey, you need to get dressed," Lucas said, motioning vaguely towards Maya's closet. She raised an eyebrow at him. He hadn't made a big deal about her being in her pajamas up to that point, she couldn't figure out why he was making it a deal now. "If you want to wear that out be my guest, but people at the museum might think you're weird."

"We're not actually going to the MOMA that was a lie." She responded, making sure to over exaggerate the word lie to make him feel extra dumb. She ran a hand through her untamed hair, catching it on a few snags in the process. Lucas stared at her, and she couldn't read his expression, but she was pretty sure it was one of judgment.

"Would you rather stay here and talk about my uncle's toe fungus?" he asked, shuffling through the papers he'd tossed next to him on her bed. He found the one he was looking for rather quickly, "I think I might have pictures."

"Fine!" she groaned, tossing her hands up as a sign of defeat, "I'll get dressed."

It only took two decently wide strides to reach her closet; it only took one swift movement to swing open the door. The inside of her closet was a wreck - she often shoved her mess into her closet and called it cleaning – but she knew where everything was. Or at least that's what she said.

She grabbed the first two things that looked like they were clean. One was denim and the other was something floral. She just prayed they weren't both shirts – that would be embarrassing to have to come back and explain to Lucas. She completely avoided her dresser, not looking to rifle through her bras in front of Lucas.

It was easy for her to continue looking and acting annoyed by the whole situation. She'd mastered that art back in freshman year when Farkle would talk them into going to the planetarium. She made sure to give Lucas a pointed look before exiting her room. She was half-way through the bathroom when she realized she should have just kicked Lucas out of her room and changed in there. She could have even gotten in a short nap.

The one bathroom in the apartment was tiny, all the space had been allotted to the bedrooms. The floor was partially covered in discarded clothes as her and her mother both had a bad habit of leaving them there when they'd finished their shower. She got dressed as fast as she could – luckily she'd managed to grab a top and a bottom. Even luckier, she'd left four or five bras in the bathroom over the last week and had a decent selection to pick from. The jeans she'd grabbed were too long, and probably would make for a hot day in the summer so she rolled up the bottoms just past her ankles.

She attempted to run a brush through her hair, but gave up almost immediately. She'd need a long shower and an hour with a straightening iron to do anything remotely alright with it. She grabbed one of the many hair ties scattered around the sink and forced her hair into a haphazard bun at her crown. She looked sleepy, worn out, and more than a little messy but she wasn't trying to impress anyone – besides, this was how 'serious artists' were supposed to look, right?

She tossed her pajamas in the growing pile on the floor. She'd get those later… well, she'd _probably _get those later. Or her mom would have a day off and power clean the house and she would get them then. Either way she was not bringing them back to her room. She slid out of the bathroom and into the hall.

"There's a boy in your room," Her grandmother stopped her in the hallway, and was giving her a coy grin that implied she thought something was happening.

"There's a boy in mom's room too," Maya said, motioning towards her mother's closed door. Her grandma shot her a look that was somewhere between unimpressed and disappointed; Maya should have come up with a better diversion but she didn't have it in her. "He's helping me with a school project."

It was a lie that had worked before on her grandma – hell, it was a lie that worked on her mom and even Riley's dad. Parents couldn't refute the lie, they didn't know school schedules. If they sent the kid home you could fail and they'd be responsible. So they never did, it was perfect.

"Right, dear." Her gran replied, shuffling past her. She added, quieter, "Too bad school's over."

Maya was pretty sure that she blushed all the way back to her room. She really needed to get some better excuses, because if she and Lucas were hanging out all summer, her family – regardless of how spaced out they could be – would notice.

"Come on, cowboy." She called to Lucas just as she reached her open bedroom door. She didn't know what she expected to find. Maybe him rifling through her things, maybe him shaving the sides of his head, maybe him making out with her mother – these were all things that she'd walked in on boys doing before, granted one of those boys was Shawn Hunter.

However, what she found was out of the realm of what she expected. Lucas, leaning back on her pink brick wall, eyes closed and lightly snoring. That asshole had fallen asleep. He'd woken her up hours too early, made her change, and was now asleep on her bed. She was angry – she was also, however, very tired, and had to stop herself from leaving him be and simply falling asleep at the other end of the bed. A nap would be nice, but sleeping with Lucas was not in her plans.

Ten minutes, two shoes and one slap in the face later, they were on their way to the subway. Lucas was still rubbing the side of his face, she hadn't even slapped him _that _hard. And he didn't wake up when she shook him, so it was the next logical step. Maya slid her phone out of her pocket, checking the embark app again – it was routine for her to check multiple times that the train was going to be on time. If it was late it would mess her up, so she wanted to know what was happening down to the minute.

"Would you stop looking at that?" Lucas asked, finally dropping his hand from his face, "The subway is never late."

Maya shot him a dirty look. While it was true that the subway was usually accurate enough to set your watch by, those rare occasions where it broke down for far longer than anyone had time for did exist. She secretly wished it would happen right now – maybe a rat could get on the rails, fry itself and blow out the whole grid.

"If you don't walk a little faster there, Hop Along, we might be the ones who are late." She replied. But she slid her phone back into her pocket anyway, feeling a little more embarrassed than she wanted to.

The Union Square station was always busy – Maya had been here at two am and there were still a dozen people milling about the terminal. She and Lucas managed to meld into the crowd almost seamlessly. He pulled out his Metro Pass, she did not. It was tucked away on the back of her phone, which was too much work for her to go through in this traffic.

When they hit the Mezzanine level, people were flowing through the gates in both directions. The subway agent was busy talking to a couple who both spoke with heavy Russian accents. Maya slid through on someone else's pass – it was a young girl and her hipster boyfriend, they deserved to be taken advantage of. Lucas ran his card and made it a point to stare disapprovingly at Maya as he did so.

"You could get in trouble for that." He said to her as they descended the stairs with the crowd. She rolled her eyes and shrugged, an exact mimic of his move – which was actually her move – from earlier. Maya would use her student Metro Pass (and maybe another student Metro Pass she'd convinced a freshman to give her) on school days to get where she needed to go, but now that it was summer she was back to pressing her luck.

"I could get in trouble for a lot of things, Richie Rich." She quipped back as they descended a second set of stairs. It took her a second to orient where they were supposed to be going. She double checked the signs before heading towards the platform.

"Seriously, Maya." Lucas said, trailing after her. He didn't ask if she knew where she was going, he was just blindly following her. She wondered if he'd jump onto the tracks if she did first. "Do you even have a Metro Card?"

"Yes, I have a Metro Card." She responded. Her hands found their way to her hips; she probably looked more pissed than she was, but she didn't bother to change anything. Lucas' gaze didn't falter and they stood there, staring at each other until the Northbound N pulled into the station.

They surged forward with the crowd. Maya ended up stood with her face pressed far too close to Lucas' shirt collar. The person behind her carried a guitar too large for this crowded train and a girl next to the two of them was in the process of knitting a sweater for a taxidermy cat she was holding.

"Does she think the cat is cold?" Maya asked Lucas in a voice just above a whisper. The train lurched forward, shifting every passenger forward just a bit. The noise on the train was just above a dull roar, but people were still sleeping, reading books, one guy was even freestyling.

"Do you need me to buy you a Metro Card?" Lucas asked. Maya groaned. If she wasn't holding onto the overhead rail for support she have thrown her hands up in annoyance. She could not believe that he was still on this. It happened at least five minutes ago, she was over it why couldn't he be.

"No." She made sure to enunciate clearly so he would get the memo that he could leave it the hell alone. Lucas, of course, could not leave it. He never could – it was like he was competing for a 'most reputable' award and just had to do the right thing.

"You could go to jail for that. Jail." He said, and the train slowed to a stop lurching again once it pulled into the 23rd Street station. Maya wanted to tell him that she would do great in jail. She'd watched all the seasons of that one Netflix show about prison and she was sure she could handle herself. He repeated himself, "Jail, Maya. Jail."

"I'm sorry, where could I go, I don't think I caught that," She said, being intentionally annoying. Hoping that it would prompt him to drop the conversation. Or at least change it to something she wanted to talk about, like that cat sweater that still made no sense to her. The doors hissed shut and the train lurched once more.

"I'm serious." He said, attempting to give her a stern look. Lucas, however, could not pull off stern. He could pull off 'Abercrombie model who found out they didn't give him gluten free wheat thins and is now mad' but not stern.

"Oh, you're serious." Maya imitated him, lowering her voice just enough to make it sound ridiculous. And Lucas cracked a smile – she could tell he didn't want to, but he always laughed at Maya's terrible impressions of people. He was trying to regain his 'stern' appearance and failing quite wonderfully. His expression was a train wreck and she couldn't look away.

The train stopped again, everyone lurched again, and the guy with the guitar hit her again. She rubbed the back of her head where she was hit with her free hand, "Now can we talk about that cat or not?" she asked.

Lucas looked over at the young girl near them who had paused her knitting to pet the stuffed creature on her lap. When he turned back to Maya his eyes were wide and his smile was slightly wonky, he even shook his head a bit in disbelief. The door closed and their journey continued.

"I do not get this city." He said more to himself than to Maya. But she was going to respond to it anyway, happy that he was finally off the Metro Pass issue. She was already dreading when he'd bring it up on their ride back; she hoped he'd take a different train home.

"It doesn't get you either, Texas." She said, punctuating her sentence with a laugh. While she said it jokingly, she genuinely meant it. People in New York didn't get how to be genuinely nice – which Lucas Friar was – they were rude and didn't smile as you passed. When you encountered someone like Lucas, the initial instinct was to be suspicious of him, of why he was being so nice. If Maya didn't have Riley, her equally nice if not nicer best friend, she wouldn't have gotten him either.

The last four stops passed without note. The guitar guy left at the Time Square station (typical) and the girl with the fake cat pulled a real one out of her bag (atypical), but there was no stabbing or celebrity sighting which were the only two things that would make a subway trip memorable.

At the Seventh Avenue stop she was the first one off the train and Lucas wasn't far behind her. It was easy to enter the swarm of people ascending the stairs. The platform was filled with tourists who had come to see Carnegie Hall and were now hoping to make the trip to Time Square. Maya took the steps two at a time, hoping to get out of the underground trash heap that was Midtown 57th.

"Hey, wait." Lucas had grabbed Maya's arm to stop her from going up the steps to the street. She stared at his hand on her arm a few moments too long before her eyes trailed up to his face.

"What?" She asked. Her skin was doing that sticky, sweaty thing that it had done when he put his hand on her shoulder. She reasoned that was just what New York in the summer did to her. He didn't answer her, but instead lead her to the MetroCard kiosk.

"Got to refill my card." He finally answered, pulling out the yellow and blue card from his pocket. She sighed, couldn't he do this when they left? She wanted to get up to the street and buy a hotdog on the way to the MOMA. If they waited too long it would be the noon rush and she'd never get the street meat she wanted.

She waited for him, impatiently, to finish. With every passing moment she found a new way to fidget, unable to stand still for even a second while he was pressing buttons. She slid her phone out of her pocket, hoping to distract herself.

"Here." Lucas placed the familiar card on top of her phone screen, blocking her view.

"I'm not holding your stuff, Lucas. You have pockets." She said picking the card up off her screen and holding it out for him with one hand. She put her phone back into her pocket with the other one.

"That's not my stuff, Maya. It's yours." he said, giving her his signature grin that was supposed to make her feel warm inside - that was usually the intended purpose - but she just wanted to punch all his teeth out.

Maya had contemplated ripping up the MetroCard, throwing the pieces at him, and leaving. Why Lucas thought that he could just do whatever he wanted in the name of being valiant and good - or whatever he thought he was being - was shitty on so many levels. It reminded her of Riley; they both had trouble accepting Maya's boundaries.

Ripping it up would essentially be like ripping up money - which  
Maya could never do, it was against her nature. She tossed it at him, frown  
plastered on her face.

"Fuck you," Maya spat at him. She didn't need his pity, and she was perfectly capable of buying her own MetroCard. She'd even fucking told him that. He looked confused, like he didn't know why she was mad. "When I say no, I fucking mean no."

"Maya." Lucas trailed off and took a small step back from her, glancing around them at the few subway patrons that had stopped briefly to stare at them. The police officer that was stood near the exit had started paying a bit too much attention for his liking.

"I know you're paying for my art class. And I've humored you today with your fucking studying, but I'm not going to just let you get away with whatever you want." Her voice was raising, and she could feel tears pricking at her eyes. She hated that she'd cry when she got angry enough; this was definitely not the time for tears.

"I'm sorry I didn't think you-" Lucas was cut off.

"Didn't think I'd be upset?" She half-yelled. The police officer took a step towards them and Lucas looked more panicked than he should have. It was so typical of him. Always trying to save face. "Asshole."

She angrily let out a loud 'ugh' before turning and stomping off towards the turnstiles. She made a huge show of pulling her phone out of her pocket, popping the back off and pulling out her MetroCard. She ran it through, pushed through the turnstile. She turned to gesture dramatically at Lucas before descending down the stairs to go home.


	3. Chapter 3

Lucas didn't chase after her in some grand romantic gesture – hell, Maya didn't know what happened to him. He could have gotten arrested and was in the process of being shipped off to some high-end military school in the middle of Death Valley. There was no apology, no yelling down the train platform about how he didn't mean to hurt her feelings. Of course she didn't want that. But she wanted something, she at least wanted him to feel bad.

She hopped on the southbound orange line, she did not want to go back to her house. Her mother would ask about Lucas, her grandmother would make eyes at her, and all those dumb papers Lucas had brought over would be scattered on her bed where he left them. At least they would make for good kindling if she ever needed to start a fire.

It wasn't long before she found herself at the Matthew's apartment in the Village. She had the option to ring the bell, get buzzed in, and have to talk to their horrendous doorman who always breathed way too heavily. She instead chose to climb the fire escape. Which required more upper body strength but less social grace.

Finding Riley's bay window, while the exact same as the other bay windows in the building, was second nature to Maya. She could do it in the middle of the night during a power outage, the atmosphere just changed around it. And yeah, maybe that was cheesy and something out of the pages of a teen romance novel, but she didn't care.

All three windows were open, they would stay that way for the next few weeks until the heat got to the point of sweltering and the Matthews would turn on their air conditioning. Those were the days Maya loved best in the summer. When she could escape the too hot days in the cool comfort of Riley's room where they would watch bad movies.

Riley wasn't in her room, the scent wafting through the open windows was a signal that they were about to have lunch. Maya wondered why Riley hadn't invited her over to eat with them – she probably thought that Maya was still fast asleep in her bed, and that's exactly where she would have been if not for Texas.

She climbed in through the open window and took a seat in her usual spot. A calm permeated her, like just being there in her safe space was enough to get her out of the funk that Lucas had managed to put her in. She wanted to talk to someone about it, to have them validate how she felt. Currently all her options - Riley, Katy, Farkle, Cory - were people she couldn't tell.

Riley wouldn't understand. Katy would just be sad. Farkle would be - well he'd be the most understanding, and probably offer to do something that was actually valliant and decent but it would get back to Riley and she couldn't have that. Cory would probably try to teach her something. So she sat there taking deep breaths, slowly releasing her anger into the universe.

Riley came in moments later, headphones in, singing along to some heavy bass pop song that Maya only knew part of the words to (and she only knew that many because of Riley). Her face lit up once she spotted Maya in the bay window. Riley always made you feel like you were the most important person in the room, which was one of the many reasons that Maya loved her.

"Maya! I'm so glad you're here!" She pulled her headphones out of her ears and tossed them, along with her phone, on to her bed. She practically skipped over to the window seat and sat there next to the blonde. "We have so much to talk about."

"Did something happen in my favorite soap: The Riley Matthew's Story?" She responded. Riley was beaming, and Maya was pretty sure that she was as well. She had a hard time being anything but happy around a happy, bubbly Riley - except when she was too happy and bubbly and then it was very easy to be unhappy.

"Of course it did. Lucas is staying here for the summer. This could finally be my moment." Riley said, clasping her hands together. Maya's bright smile faded into something resembling a grimace.

_Fuck._

Maya knew that Riley wouldn't be on board with her dating Lucas even if it was all for show. Sure, she'd say something like 'if it had to be someone other than me, I'm glad it's you' but she would have been shattered. Maya hadn't, however, taken into consideration that she would be actively going after Lucas.

"And it's his brother's wedding at the end of the summer," She continued, giving Maya's leg a few pats, "Which means he'll need a date. I could be that date."

Maybe she could convince Lucas to take Riley - granted she didn't want to particularly convince Lucas of anything other than the fact that he was an asshole, but Riley was talking about this summer with the closest thing to heart eyes Maya had ever seen. She couldn't break her heart.

"Riley!" Topanga's voice echoed through the apartment. And Riley snapped her attention to the door, trying to peer out it without having to get up. That was impossible, Maya knew from multiple attempts at doing the same thing.

"Dad's at work, so mom is making us take a 'family lunch' and go see him," Riley had made sure to use air quotes around the words family and lunch. Maya wasn't sure why as they were probably going to actually have lunch as a family, but she let it slide. "My first day off and I have to go back to school. What a drag. You want to come?"

Topanga yelled again for Riley, this time much closer than the first and slightly more strained as well. That probably meant that she was fighting with Riley's brother, who had begun insisting that everyone call him by his full name August.

"Go to school on a day I don't have to?" Maya's question was laced with sarcasm that Riley immediately picked up on. It was apparent by her over the top pout and her bad attempts to hide a smile, "I'd love to, but I think I'm going to have to pass."

"Fine, but next year don't expect the fix to work for you." Riley furrowed her brow and narrowed her eyes. She wasn't intimidating but she gave it her best attempt. She pointed a finger at Maya, "A Matthews never forgets."

"You forget everything," Maya responded, grabbing and wiggling Riley's finger. Riley, of course, was unable to hold back a laugh. That girl somehow managed to be all the sugar and none of the spice, and Maya was perfectly okay with that.

Topanga barged into the room, holding August by the hand. He was dressed in what could only be described as 'Hawaiian tourist casual' and looked curmudgeon about the whole situation. Riley and Maya both jumped a little at the sudden intrusion.

"Did you not hear me yelling for you? I kept saying 'Riley, Riley' and there was no answer," She said, using her free hand to emphasize what she was saying. Talking with their hands was a trait all the Matthews shared, made for an entertaining show.

"I was trying to talk Maya into going," Riley explained gesturing towards Maya who put her hands up in mock protest, "But she'd decided to decline preferring to do literally anything else."

Topanga gave her daughter a deadpan look, and Maya could tell that she was about to launch into a whole spiel about not using her friends to be passive-aggressive about their family activities. This was an argument they'd been prone to since friends started showing up at family game night in middle school.

"She'd right, Mrs. Matthews." Maya chimed in, hoping to stop the argument before it even began. "Those were my exact words actually. 'Literally anything else.'"

"Hey there, darling." Her mother was in the kitchen – which also meant she was in the living room - when she got home. Maya could smell the burning bacon from the hallway, but it was much more palpable inside the apartment. "Your cute friend with you? I'm making lunch."

"He had to go home." Maya responded, sidling up to her mother. Bacon grease popped at the two of them, singing the skin on Maya's forearm and dotting her clothes. BLTs were her mother's specialty.

"More for us then," Katy responded, adding the last few pieces of extra crispy bacon to the pile on the dinner plate next to her. She turned off the oven and poured the still hot grease down the sink – which was something Maya had learned not to do in Home Economics, but her mother was the professional here.

She waited at the table for her mom to assemble the sandwiches, she always felt like a little kid when someone brought the food to her. It seldom happened anymore, now that her mother was working ten hour shifts four nights a week and spent the other three at night school. But the few times it did, they were nice escapes from Maya having to grow up to fast.

"When does your class start?" Katy asked, placing a plate in front of her daughter. Maya's stomach fell – _shit_. She'd forgotten that she'd told her mom she had a scholarship for the art class. This morning she had been so sure that she would be enrolled, and now she was no closer to that class than she'd been last year.

"Not sure yet," She replied. She took a too large bite out of her sandwich in order to not have to talk for a few minutes. Katy was more than happy to fill the silence with tales from the dinner, which allowed Maya to focus on what was really important.

It was eight days until enrollment in the art class closed. The options were: tell her mom she lied about the scholarship, make the money, or get back with Lucas. None of them were actually viable options. It was either face her mother's disappointment, become a prostitute – because there was no other way she was going to make six hundred dollars that fast – or swallow her anger (and maybe her pride) and face Lucas.

It hadn't even been a full hour yet and she was already considering conceding to him. She didn't owe him an apology, in fact it was the exact opposite, but she really needed that class. And she really needed Lucas to talk to Riley. She also really needed a nap, but that would have to wait. She took two more oversized bites, swallowed with some difficulty and got up from the table.

"Put your plate in the sink, hun." Her mother said, taking time and care in eating her lunch. Maya knew that she would regret eating so quickly, but she didn't have time to savor her meal. She had more important things to do.

She picked her plate up, carried it the three feet to the sink and sat down with a loud thunk. Her mood, which was on the rise from her visit with Riley and a free lunch, had taken a nose dive. She stalked off towards her room.

Maya was fretting having to talk to Lucas, she couldn't flatout apologize because then she would lose all the power in the relationship and negotiations would never get off the ground. She needed to somehow trick him into being the one to apologize. She paused her walk to her room to pull out her phone and shoot off a single text.

_**We need to talk.**_

Those four words could scare anyone shitless – she knew from being on the receiving end of them. She was sure Lucas would be starting to sweat already. She chuckled to herself sliding her phone back into her pocket and rounding the door frame into her bedroom.

"Holy fuck!" She screamed. She was pretty sure that she'd managed to jump completely out of her skin and then back into it. Lucas was there. In her room once again.

"Is everything alright, Maya?" Her mother yelled down the relatively short hallway. Maya could hear her mom's chair scrape against the floor, signaling that she was going to come and check out whatever was happening. Maya didn't want her mom and Lucas in the same room again, that could be catastrophic.

"Everything is fine. Just a stray cat." She yelled back, sliding further into her room so she could shut her door. Her mom's next words were muddled but she was pretty sure it was acceptance of Maya's lie. She turned her attention back to Lucas and shouted at him just above a whisper, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I came to apologize," he said. He looked more than a little uncomfortable, like he didn't actually _want _to be there.

"Apology accepted," she said. Maya didn't want to actually have to sit through an apology from him. It would probably be long and boring, and might even contain words like 'ma'am' and 'ya'll' which would really push her over the edge.

"No, I actually want to do it," He responded, and his discomfort from before seemed to melt away. He was on a mission – and that mission was probably to annoy Maya. "I promise I'll make it short."

Maya's only response was to groan, which Lucas took to mean he could continue.

"I acted like I knew what was best for you and I don't. You know what's best for you," He said, keeping his focus on Maya. She was pretty sure he'd managed to transfer his original discomfort to her and was wishing she knew a way to give it back, "I was a jerk. I'm sorry."

"Are you done?" She asked and she raised an eyebrow at him. He furrowed his brow, trying to figure out if he'd left something out. "So I say again, apology accepted. We have more important things to talk about anyway."

"We do?" He had gone from being confused about one thing to being confused about another. What an idiot this boy was. "If this is about your class, I went ahead and signed you up."

He patted his pants pocket both front and back before reaching into the left front one and pulling out a folded up piece of paper. Maya was the one to close the six foot gap between them and snatch the paper out of his hands. Upon unfolding it, she realized that it was a confirmation of enrollment.

"What if I hadn't accepted your apology?" She asked, not taking her eyes off the paper. She wasn't sure that this was actually happening to her, and she felt a little like she was about to wake up from some weird dream.

"Then I would have to bribe you with something else." he said. The shadow of a smile played on his mouth.

"Wear something nice and meet me at Union Square at five" had been Lucas' parting words. That was over twenty four hours ago, and it had been radio silence from him ever since. He'd even taken his handy charts and pamphlets and entire biographies on his family members with him so she had nothing to study. Not that she would study, of course. But it would have been nice to have the option.

She wore her only dress: a simple black number that hit her just at the knees and had lace sleeves. It was mainly used for funerals. She'd worn silver shoes and a necklace to disguise the fact that it was her funeral dress, but she was sure you could still tell.

She had made sure to be on time, even a few minutes early, but Lucas hadn't been there when she arrived which was slightly worrying. If he had decided to cancel, he could have at least called so she wouldn't have to get dressed up. She'd slid her phone into her bra, and was about to pull it out to check the time when a decade old Toyota Corolla pulled up to the curb next to her.

The driver's side door open and Lucas popped out. He was wearing a black suit and he'd gotten his hair cut. Maya couldn't help but stare. She'd seen him in blazers for semi-formal, but never in a full-blown suit. He looked good – of course he did, everyone looks good in a suit.

"Come on," Lucas yelled to her, gesturing for her to come over. She sighed and moved towards the car, "We're late."

"No," Maya said, pulling open the passenger door, "You're late."

Lucas slid back into the driver's seat, and she definitely caught his eye roll. She wanted to roll her eyes in response, but held back. He probably wouldn't notice anyway. She did, however, take an extra-long time to put on her seatbelt just to spite him.

The moment her belt clicked into place, he took off. Maya was holding onto the overhead handle and middle compartment for dear life. She seldom rode in cars; her mother didn't own one and taxis were far too expensive – seriously who would pay four dollars to get driven a mile. She was raised on the subway so every time she was in a car she felt a little uncomfortable.

This was especially true right now. New York traffic always made her on edge. She constantly expected a wreck. It took her until they hit the Upper East Side to get comfortable. Lucas is a cautious driver, maybe even overly so, but she appreciated it.

"I hope your house isn't decked out in cow print," She said, breaking the silence in the car. Lucas' eyes were straight ahead, but a small smile spread across his lips, "I swear, if anyone is wearing spurs I'm not going to be able to resist the urge to make fun of them."

"If you see spurs I'll make fun of 'em with you." He said, double checking his blind spot before he changed lanes. She half expected him to turn onto the Kennedy and take her into Brooklyn. There was something about him that screamed I live in the rich part of Brooklyn, but when they passed under it she began to wonder.

"Do you live in East Manhattan?" She asked, her brow had begun to furrow as she tried to orient where they were. Lucas stayed quiet, focusing on the steadily increasing traffic around them. "I'd ask if you lived in The Bronx, but its pretty obvious that you don't. No offense."

They slowed down and she noticed the tolls. Where were there tolls on this street? She couldn't quite place it. The water was also a throw off. They'd just been driving past the Harlem River, right? This couldn't also be the Harlem – then it clicked.

"Why are we crossing the Hudson?" She asked, staring out the window into the Hudson River. Her stomach sank, "Oh no, you're not taking me into Jersey."

She tried to open the door, it was locked. Of course it was locked, they were going thirty miles an hour across the George Washington Bridge and Lucas was all about safety. She should have been paying more attention at the toll, which they didn't have to pay since they were entering New Jersey. No one would _ever_ pay to enter Jersey.

"Why did I have to dress nice for Jersey? It's literally America's armpit." She groaned, once again trying to open her door. Lucas pressed the lock button again just to make sure that she wasn't actually going to be able to jump out.

"Maybe don't say those things at dinner." He said, focusing as much of his attention as he could on driving. The heavy traffic was probably stress inducing for him, but having to enter a state that was literally a pile of trash was stress inducing for her.

"Oh, so we're actually having dinner? You didn't bring me out here to kill a drifter?" She said. She'd resigned herself to being stuck in the car against her will. So she crossed her arms, huffed loudly and frowned.

"No, I'm saving that for the second date." He chuckled at his own joke, and Maya despite her best efforts cracked a smile. She, of course, wouldn't let him know that. He was too busy making sure they didn't die in _New Jersey_ to pay attention to what she was doing. So she could get away with a smile at a lame joke without a problem.

He merged into the right lane and took the first exit. They were driving parallel to the Hudson, and she was pretty sure that she'd watched a Law and Order episode that started just like this. If she was going to get murdered by Lucas it sure as hell wasn't going to be in New Jersey.

"Where are we going?" She asked. She shifted her whole body to face Lucas so he knew that she meant business. The traffic was much thinner on the parkway so he didn't have to pay as much attention. There was a long pause, like Lucas was contemplating what to tell her.

"We're going to dinner, Maya," He finally said. He took the first exit off the Parkway, which lead them deep into suburban living.

"I swear to God Lucas. If you Hannibal Lector me I will come back and haunt your ass." She said. Her words sounded jovial, but the tone she delivered them in was completely serious.

"Okay, gross Maya." He said, turning once again down another boring suburban street. Maya was sure she was about to see a group of white women power-walking or someone dragging their child along on a leash. He slowed to a crawl in front of a white privacy fence.

"Please tell me you're not lost." She said, closing her eyes and shaking her head. Not only had he forced her to go to New Jersey he'd gotten her lost there.

"I'm not lost." He said. The car Sturned and she felt a slight bump._ Oh god, they'd hit something! _Her eyes flew open and she was ready to bolt, there was no way she was going to go to jail tonight. Lucas was calm, still driving only this time it was up a driveway.

"_Holy fuck."_

She gawked. A home the size of her entire apartment complex sat at the end of a large round driveway – maybe she was exaggerating slightly, but the house was larger than any house she'd seen before. Hell it was like a house ate another house. The only thing she could compare it to was one of those huge, Victorian houses in that Colin Firth Pride and Prejudice movie that Riley had made her watch.

"But, this is _New Jersey_."


	4. Chapter 4

"But this is New Jersey."

"Surprise, Yankee. Not everything in Jersey is," he paused. She wasn't sure if he was acting like he couldn't remember something or if he was actually trying to remember it, "How did you put it? Literally America's armpit?"

There was a brief moment where she wanted to start backpedaling, to tell him that she had just been joking or that she didn't mean armpit in a bad way. Except that wasn't true. It hadn't been a joke and she totally meant armpit in the worst way possible. A nice house didn't subdue her dislike for Jersey – she was sure plenty of places she didn't like had nice things in them.

"Look at a map, cowboy. It is an armpit." She said, defending her earlier statement. She also attempted to disguise her astonishment at the house – which had a fountain out front as large as her bathroom – as something more low key.

She didn't have to look at Lucas to know that he was probably rolling his eyes at her, and not in the fond way he used with Riley, in the annoyed way that was just for Maya. He pulled up to the garage, where three other cars were already parked.

Maya scoffed to herself. Three cars? Outside of the garage. That meant what, probably another four inside. Fucking rich people. The car was in park, but he hadn't taken the keys out of the ignition. Was she just supposed to sit there and wait for him? Was he trying to amp himself up? Fuck, was this actually a break in?

"Lucas?" she asked, hoping the questioning in her tone didn't convey what she was thinking.

"Sorry, I'm just –" he cut himself off. She watched him to those 'calming breath' exercises they'd been taught in health class when talking about anxiety. He was worried, of course he was. Maya didn't know why she thought he wouldn't be. His calm breathing stopped and she could see him physically shift, "You ready to do this?"

"Uh, y-yeah," She could barely get the words out before he pulled the keys out of the ignition and exited the vehicle. She went to open her door only to find him on the other side opening it for her. She shot him a weary look – she could open her own door thank you very much – but exited the car anyway. He closed it behind her.

Deep breath in. Hold. Let it out. She was ready for this. A free dinner, a summer of art classes, and hell - maybe the Friar family would have a yacht she could take a cruise around the bay in. That's what girlfriends – fake or not - of stupidly wealthy boys did, right?

She started off towards the front door, head held high. She totally was going to rock this, or maybe she wasn't, but she could at least lie to herself for a few more minutes. She paused, noticing that Lucas was not trailing at her heels as he was one to do. Upon investigation, which was literally her turning around to see where he went, she spotted him still standing by the car. Maya trudged back to him.

"One foot in front of the other, pal." She said, gesturing towards the door. He didn't move. She did not ride in a car with him for twenty minutes to stand in a driveway. "Come on!"

This was pointless. He was not ready to do this, but had no choice. They were already there. She grabbed his hand and interlaced their fingers together. That would look better to his family, who, if they were anything like hers, were watching them from the front windows.

She could feel his eyes on her, she wasn't sure why. Wasn't this what he wanted her to do? Play the role of loving girlfriend – but not too loving, of course. She'd specifically remembered in their negotiation that there had been mentions of hand holding.

Pulling his towards the front door was easier than expected. Once she'd managed to get him in motion, he was able to stay in motion of his own volition. He did still trail behind her; she kept lightly yanking his arm forward, hoping he would walk next to her like a normal human.

She paused at the bottom of the stairs that lead up to the front door, and Lucas finally stood next to her. The house was more ridiculous up close; she was pretty sure her entire apartment would fit on the front porch alone.

"What the hell." She muttered to herself, but she could feel Lucas nod in agreement. As if he too was shocked by the house he lived in – wait. There was no way Lucas lived here, you can't live in New Jersey and go to school in New York. He rode the subway for fuck sake. She groaned, "Is this a stranger's house? Are we about to gate crash some family's dinner?"

Before he had a chance to respond, the front doors opened – yes both of them, like the Queen was entering the room – and out came a leggy brunette who was definitely not Lucas' mother. She was all wide smiles and erratic energy. She reminded Maya a little bit of what a forty year old Riley would be like.

"Finally! We thought ya'll would never make it!" she spoke with a heavy southern accent. She stood at the top of the stairs gesturing for them to approach. At least they were expected, even if it was by a woman Maya had literally never seen or heard of before.

"Hey there, Gracie." Lucas finally spoke. Maya breathed out a sigh of relief, happy that he wasn't broken beyond repair, but also happy that she didn't have to make the first move towards the peppy woman. Lucas ascended the stairs, this time pulling her along behind him.

"Now you know you can call me mama." She said, patting Lucas on the shoulder lightly. Lucas's hand tightened on Maya's. She'd almost forgotten that they were still holding hands, but now that it had been brought to her attention she realized just how hot her skin was feeling. Maybe it was just humid in New Jersey.

"And what can I call you?" Maya finally broke the tension between them. If she let the silence go on much longer Lucas might have said something very un-Lucas like to the woman. Grace, who had been previously focused solely on Lucas, turned her attention to Maya.

"Oh, Maya!" hearing her name roll out in that thick southern drawl felt familiar and completely wrong at the same time, "With how much I've heard about you, you might as well call me Mama too. Now come on in you two, dinner's almost ready."

The woman turned with such grace that Maya was sure her name suited her perfectly. Lucas sighed quietly beside her – there was no way he was going to make it through this. Maya took the lead once again, but was gentler about it this time when she pulled him towards the open double doors.

"I haven't told her anything about you," He said quickly, like he was trying to get something out before he messed it up, "She was making that up."

"Yeah, I kinda assumed." Maya responded, rolling her eyes. He really didn't need to clarify that he didn't talk to anyone about her, she knew that she wasn't exactly top tier on his 'topics to talk about' chart.

"That was my step-mom. This is my dad's house," He said, much slower this time. And she stopped them before they crossed the threshold. She furrowed her brow and turned to look at him. He was already staring at her.

"No, your dad lives in Texas." She said. That's why Lucas always went back there in the summer, and that's why he was so hell bent on visiting so often back in middle school – less so, of course, in high school when his and his father's relationship dissipated but still.

"No," Lucas said, and for the first time since they'd arrived he smiled. It might have been at her expense but she was still a bit happy to know that he wasn't going to be grumpy the entire time they were there, "He's lived here for three years now."

"But you don't live here?" She asked him, turning to look back into the expansive house. There were double staircases in the foyer that lead to the second floor and a chandelier that Maya was pretty sure was worth more than everything her family owned combined.

"In New Jersey?" He asked, his smile growing a bit, "It's the armpit of America, I would never live here."

They heard Grace yell something from a far off room followed by a loud roar of laughter. Lucas finally turned to face the house. She felt him squeeze her hand once more before crossing the threshold into the house.

She wasn't sure why they were still holding hands, it was obvious that there was no one around to see them, not even a butler – which, yeah, Maya had expected someone named Jeeves to be waiting at the door. She thought about pulling her hand away as Lucas attempted to navigate the house; it was obvious he hadn't spent much time here.

It took him accidentally walking into a few of the wrong rooms – including a den that was decked out entirely in pelican figurines and boat themed furniture – for rich people they had terrible taste – before he finally walked them into the kitchen.

The room erupted the moment the two joined them.

Lucas dropped her hand, and she was finally able to wipe her sweaty palm on her dress. Holding hands with other boys had never been such an undertaking – granted other boys usually wanted to put their hands other places. When she glanced back up, Lucas and his brother were embracing one another while their sister was teasing them.

"Maya is going to get jealous if you keep that up," his sister said. Her accent was thicker than Lucas's but nowhere near as bad as Grace's had been. Lucas pulled away from his brother, giving his sister a very pointed look. Maya took a step towards them, getting ready to say that she would not get jealous. Before she had a chance to, a tall, dark-skinned girl sidled over to them.

"If she doesn't, I might." She said, putting an arm around Lucas's brother. Lucas's mother, Annie, was seated at the end of the table watching her children fondly. Grace was leaning against the kitchen counter, a glass of red wine in hand. Lucas' father was no where in sight.

Lucas was hugging his sister, she was laughing at something he was whispering in her ear. Maya was pretty sure she could have disappeared into one of the massive rooms and no one would have noticed. She was thinking about doing just that when she spotted Lucas's mom closing in on her.

"Oh, Maya. It's been too long." she said. It had been years since she had actually seen Annie. Her light blonde hair had been styled and her dress probably cost more than Maya's entire wardrobe, but the older woman still managed to keep her crunchy granola feel. It was probably the smell of fresh cut grass and dirt - a scent that Maya didn't experience often in the city - that did most of the heavy lifting. "Lucas has kept me up to date though. I hear you're doing art this summer. I can't wait to see what life with the Friars inspires."

"Mom, do not scare away the only respectable girl Lucas has brought home," Lucas's sister had made their way over to them. She must have finally wormed her way out of Lucas's hug. Her blonde hair matched her mother's, but her eyes were a striking icy blue that seemed a bit other worldly. Lucas didn't have those and Maya was kind of glad. "I'm Jessica. Sure Lucas has told you plenty about me. All lies I'm sure!"

"I do not lie." Lucas said from his spot across the table. He'd paused his conversation with his brother's fiancé to make the statement. Maya snorted, of course Lucas would have to defend his honesty.

"Hush up, Lucas. The girls are talkin'." Jessica responded nonchalantly, waving him off over her shoulder. Maya peered over at Lucas who looked more than a bit perturbed at the situation.

"Do I have to hush up too, Jess?" Lucas's brother slid in between his mother and sister, placing his arms over their shoulders.

"You, Adam, especially should hush. Who knows what you might say," Jessica said. She was speaking just loud enough to keep Lucas's attention, "You might let it slip that someone still sleeps with General Oinkers his stuffed pig."

Lucas had stepped away from his conversation – well he'd bolted around the table swearing to end Jessica. She took off down the hall, and a red-faced Lucas followed after her. They were laughing, and maybe Jess was screaming a bit, but it was all in good fun.

"She just can't resist pushing his buttons." Adam said, speaking directly to Maya. Adam was gorgeous – if you were into that blonde haired, strong jawed model type. Of course, you could argue that all of the Friars fell into the category. His smile lit up his entire face, and Maya was pretty sure it could power all of New York if need be. His fiancé found her way next to him.

"He asked us to all be on our best behavior around you. Looks like Jessica couldn't oblige." She said with a smile that rivaled Adam's. She had thick, black hair that looked like a lion's mane – it framed her dark face perfectly.

Lucas had to have been worried she would totally wreck the dinner, hence the request to his family. She could have handled them at their worst. There was a soft thud from a far off room. Lucas must have caught his sister.

"I hope those two don't break anythin'. Matthew wouldn't be happy." Grace said, approaching them. She'd finished her first glass of wine and was starting on her second, this one was white. Maya half expected to hear something shatter, instead there was silence. Grace and Annie seemed to think that was somehow worse. They both grimaced before taking off.

"I got ten dollars that says they are both dead," Adam half-shouted, trailing after his two mothers.

"Are they always like this?" Maya asked, watching the three of them disappear down the hall. She hadn't gotten a chance to speak since she'd met the Friars.

"Always." Adam's fiancé said, the word should have sounded hard but managed to seem soft, fond, and above all, loving. Now that she'd met them, Maya couldn't imagine anyone speaking harshly of the Friars.

Lucas and Jessica had ended up stumbling upon their father who was in the middle of a business call. He was not amused, and he made sure they both knew it. She had heard the shouting all the way back in the kitchen. When the family rejoined Maya and Jourdan – she'd finally remembered Adam's fiancé's name – the tension between them was palpable.

Mr. Friar had a thick southern accent that perfectly matched his slightly weathered face. He managed to look like the hunting buddy of a fortune 500 CEO and someone's "grandpappy." Maya's skin crawled just looking at him.

"You good?" She whispered to Lucas, whose smile was completely gone, replaced by a hard line.

"Maya!" Lucas's father's smile was broad when he came to greet them. He held out a hand for her to shake, which she ignored. "I was starting to think L.J. was making you up."

"L.J.?" she asked, directing her question at Lucas, hoping to ignore his father all together. Lucas's jaw was clenched tight and he might have been grinding his teeth, she couldn't exactly tell.

"Yeah, Lucas John!" His father answered, Maya took in an audible annoyed breath, "Annie wouldn't let me name him Lucas Deere, so we had to compromise."

Annie rolled her eyes, Maya wanted to mimic the action. Seriously, who would name their child after a tractor company? An idiot, that's who. Could these people really be so scared of this guy?

"Well, Matty, Lucas didn't make me up. I am very real." She said, making sure to emphasize the names. Matthew's smile faded, but she could practically feel the spirits in the room lift. "So, what's for dinner?"

She stepped away from Mr. Friar, ready to get out of his gaze - she assumed it was supposed to be one of disapproval. She paused in her retreat to reach back and hold out her hand for Lucas to take. When she felt his warm hand press against hers, their fingers tangled together, she continued her escape towards the table.

The others had started their conversations back up. Annie and Grace were both staring into the oven, discussing something the looked extremely important. Jourdan and Adam had snuck out onto the back porch. Jessica was at the table, holding a place card in her hand - yes, this party of eight needed place cards for some God forsaken reason. Fucking rich people.

"You didn't answer my question." Maya whispered to Lucas. She'd stopped them just before they reached the table - she'd also made sure to drop his hand once they stopped. She couldn't do another ten minute stint of holding hands with him unless she wanted to lose five pounds of water weight.

"I thought it was rhetorical." He responded, back to his usual, jovial nature. The cloud of darkness caused by his father had dissipated.

"I thought is was rhetorical." she mocked him, using an over the top, and poorly done southern accent. Lucas laughed at her like he always did.

"Suppers ready!" Grace called. Maya waited with bated breath for her to ring a dinner bell; when no ringing came she was extremely disappointed. She started towards the table when Jessica caught her attention.

"Maya!" Jessica was practically yelling. She'd taken the middle of three seats on the far side of the table and was rapidly patting the spot to her right. "You're here!"

"Okay," Maya muttered to herself, extending each of the letters to convey her utter confusion at the situation. Jessica probably wanted to embarrass Lucas with more tales from his childhood; she'd hate to inform her that Lucas probably wouldn't care that much if Maya knew.

Maya took the spot next to Jess who was beaming - if Maya looked at her for too long she was sure she'd go blind. So she didn't look at her. She looked everywhere else: at the place settings, at her name card, at Lucas who had taken the seat at the head of the table closest to her.

"You are just as pretty as Lucas said," Jess gushed, petting Maya's hair. Lucas paled and shook his head slightly, as if to tell her that he'd never told any of them she was pretty.

"Pretty doesn't sound like a word he would use." she responded, finally looking at Jess. The older girl's smile faltered.

"He doesn't tell you how pretty you are?" She'd raised her voice and her attention had shifted from Maya to Lucas. Maya's gaze followed Jess's and it was plain to see that Lucas was both terrified and embarrassed.

"Look at her!" Jess was shouting. Maya felt Jessica's hand clasp her face; fingers pressed into both cheeks, palm pressed firm against her chin, "She could be in one of those artsy alternative magazines- she could be in Nylon!"

"Please stop." Maya attempted to say, but Jess's hand wasn't giving any leeway. She could barely get out a few groans. Jess let Maya's head stoop like she'd forgotten she was actually holding a living person and not an inanimate object.

"Tell her she's pretty." she demanded. Lucas looked like he'd just swallowed the grossest thing on the planet and was about to vomit. "Lucas John Friar!"

"You're pretty." He mumbled. Maya hoped that would satiate his crazy sister.

It, of course, didn't.

"Come on! You can do better than that. I mean look at her!" Jess gestured towards Maya's face with her free hand. The rest of the family, sans Mr. Friar, who had left to take another business call, had joined them at the table. They all thought this was hilarious - at least that's what Maya got from their laughs and smiles. Her cheeks began to hurt under Jess's fingers.

"Yeah, come on, Lucas." Adam chimed in. Jourdan smiled - or was it a smirk - and leaned over to whisper in Adam's ear. His smile got wider as she spoke.

"Tell her she'd pretty. Tell her she's pretty." They both began chanting in unison. It wasn't long before Jessica joined in, yelling louder and more rambunctious than the other two. She even tried to pump her fists, but since one hand held onto Maya's face, she failed.

"Fine!" Lucas shouted. It was the first time Maya had ever heard Lucas shout, the loudest he ever got was on the sidelines of their high school football games and even then it was barely a yell. His family quieted.

"You're pretty, gorgeous, beautiful." He made sure to stare directly at Maya. She could feel that hot, sticky feeling she got when he touched her only this time it was in the pit of her stomach. "You're so much more than that though. You're brilliant, talented, funny, and kind of a badass." He let out a small chuckle at the word badass, Maya wanted him to shove that chuckle right back into his mouth and his words could follow behind it. "You're the best artist I've ever seen, and you sing better than half the people on the radio. You are a force to be reckoned with, and a presence that can't be ignored no matter how hard someone tries."

He paused to take a deep breath. Jess's hand had fallen from Maya's face, she wasn't totally sure when it happened, but her cheeks were still a deep red. Maya attributed it to Jessica grasping her face too hard - so it couldn't have been long.

"You happy?" Lucas was staring directly at his sister, bypassing Maya completely. Not that she minded. She was happy to be ignored right now.

"Very," Jessica replied, a bit too chipper. She turned to Adam and smiled, "Pass the potatoes please."

Lucas sunk back into his chair. Maya could feel his eyes on her, but she managed to focus entirely on the rolls in front of her. She rubbed her cheeks lightly with the tips of her fingers as the seconds dragged by slowly, ignoring his look was difficult. She finally glanced over at him, meeting his gaze.

She wanted to tell him that he didn't need to go all out, that a simple 'she's okay' would have sufficed. She also wanted to tell him that the next time he made up stuff he liked about her, it would be nice if he would leave things she actually cared about - specifically her art - out of it. But they were in the company of those they were trying to deceive, so she couldn't say any of it. She'd have to save that for the car ride back to the city.

"Next time," she whispered, leaning towards him, "Leave the monologues at home, Hamlet."


End file.
